Fantasy Sports Betting

Using Fantasy Sports for 100% Legal Sports Betting In the US

The prospect of online sports betting in the United States has long been a topic of controversy. A simple Google search on the legality of online sports betting will do more to confuse you than it will to answer your inquiry. In all reality, sports betting in the US is not strictly legal, but it is not wholly illegal either. Rather, it is in a bit of a legal grey area and that alone scares many away from even trying to bet on sports online.

Having said this, however, there is a 100% legal avenue through which people in the US can bet on sports online, and that is via fantasy sports. Fantasy sports sites are popping up with more frequency as of late and are catching the attention of sports lovers all across the country. The following few sections will elaborate a bit more as to how this type of sports betting works and also why it is legal.

How is it Legal?

Betting on fantasy sports is legal whereas traditional sports betting is not based on the simple assumption that fantasy sports require an element of skill while traditional sports betting is based almost entirely on luck. As ridiculous as this sounds, the US draws a very fine line between betting on games involving skill and betting on games based on luck.

Daily Fantasy Sports Leagues are sort of a “legal loophole” for sports betting.

The simple fact that you are using your knowledge of the individual players’ skills/abilities and drafting teams accordingly is what makes betting on fantasy sports much different than simply placing a wager on the outcome of a game. The players you choose directly impact whether you win or lose a given wager and this is much different than placing a wager on the outcome of the match and hoping luck is on your side. In the end, the legality or illegality of sports betting directly correlates with how much you can directly affect the outcome of a game.

How Does It Work?

If you have ever seen or played fantasy sports in the past, playing fantasy sports online for real money is really not entirely different at all. One of the biggest differences, however, is that fantasy sports contests online are played daily as opposed to at the beginning of a given sport’s season. Many people prefer this style of fantasy sports as it allows them to start with a new slate every day.

The most common type of daily fantasy sports contest is a salary cap draft contest. These types of contest can be played head to head, against only one other person, or in a group setting where a bunch of players compete to see who has picked the best squad. When initially drafting a team, the bettor is given a sum of hypothetical money used to draft players whose individual values are determined by both the player’s skill and their recent performances. Naturally, the Lebron James, Albert Pujols, and Peyton Mannings of the sports world will end up putting a bigger dent in your team’s salary than more average players such as Andre Iguadola, Dominic Brown, and Mark Sanchez. For this reason, salary cap drafts require the bettor to spend his money wisely in order to draft a team with superior talent, yet balanced.

There are other types of drafts that do not require a bettor to balance a budget in order to draft a team, but they vary from site to site.